Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

William Edgar Mills #2679 4th Pioneer Battalion

William Mills was born at Dugandan, the son of Rueben and Ann Mills. He attended Boonah State School but by the time of his enlistment on 27th March 1916, William was living at Palm Avenue Sandgate with his widowed mother. William’s enlistment papers show his age as 28 years, a labourer, single.

While in camp at Enoggera, William contracted VD which earned him a stint in the isolation camp at Lytton. Six months after enlistment, William boarded the “Seang Choon” in Brisbane as a reinforcement for the 4th Pioneer Battalion. He had allocated 3 shillings a day from his pay to his mother.

The “Seang Choon” docked at Plymouth in early December 1916 and the pioneers marched out to the staging camp at Larkhill. By 1st March 1917, William was in the huge British transit camp at Etaples on the French coast. He joined his battalion five days later.

Pioneers were the equivalent of today’s combat engineers employed in primarily pick and shovel work on roads, trenches and light railways. They were also expected to be able to engage with the enemy when required. During the spring of 1917, the divisions of the AIF were located in Belgian Flanders in preparation for the major offensive of that year, the 3rd Battle of Ypres or more commonly referred to as Passchendaele. The campaign began on 6th June with the blowing of 19 underground mines located beneath the German lines at Messines.

The war diary of the 4th Pioneers records work in the front line under heavy artillery bombardment. On the 13th June, the diary records the death of three men, one of whom was William Mills, who were killed by a high explosive shell. William was buried in a nearby cemetery which became known as St Quentin Cabaret Military Cemetery.

Ann Mills, Williams widowed mother was granted a pension of two pounds per fortnight to compensate for the loss of her son.